Starting Spark
by TheWorldBeginsWithYou
Summary: Saturday greets Shibuya with plenty to do, and Eri and her new friends plan on making the most of it. But just who is this "Joshua" they keep mentioning? And why does he never show?


_My name is Eri Yumi. I'm friends with everyone—including a group of once-dead kids. That's all I am and ever will be—a "friend." But I don't mind, because they're all just so fun and interesting. I may not fully understand it, but I'm the girl who will always be there to support them._

"Sorry for the wait!" Eri greeted her best friend Shiki at the base of the Shibukyu Main Store. Her family lived in the apartments above it, so she often met Shiki there when the two would go out to explore Shibuya. This time, though, they weren't exploring. Both girls dressed casually this particular Saturday, their path set for Hachiko, where they'd meet up with their new friends.

Eri had already met most of them and hung out with them—how could she not want to? She laughed so much when with them, between teasing Neku about his multiple "Partners" to watching Beat freak out when she learned his full name to playing games with Rhyme. But most of them knew of and often mentioned one other person in their adventures after death—a mysterious friend.

And, sitting below the statue of Hachiko, the two found Neku staring off into space again as he waited for that last friend.

"Neku!"

The boy snapped his head up as his name was called, still in a daze. Shiki and Eri soon stood above him, the familiar black cat doll in the former's hands. For the past few days, the group had always arrived in the same order. Beat and Rhyme would no doubt come soon, apologizing about being late.

"Hey," Neku greeted the girls, easing his headphones down around his shoulders.

"Are you okay?" Shiki asked, her eyes flickering with concern. "You seemed out of it."

"I'm fine," he replied, ignoring his annoyance. "So what're we doing today?"

Beat and Rhyme came while the three were trying to think of ideas, happy as usual. Eventually, the thought of seeing a movie came up. Neku barely listened to it being tossed around, though—he didn't really care where they went. His eyes kept scanning the crowd instead, as if searching.

 _What the hell am I even looking for?_ he thought as his gaze passed over more strangers. _He's not gonna show. That prick..._

"Yo, Phones! You deaf?" Beat's voice rang this time—not exactly the most relaxing voice to bring him back to reality. "I said le's bounce, yo!"

"Uh, where are we even going again?" Neku asked, glancing away in his attempt to hide his embarrassment. He'd completely zoned out again.

"We decided on a movie," Rhyme said. "We'll pick which one once we get there."

"Sure, whatever. As long as it's not some cheesy chick flick."

They started to walk, but Shiki lagged behind with Neku. She could tell what was going on in his head, and she couldn't keep quiet about it. "Neku, are you looking for Joshua?"

His innate impulse was to deny it. "Of course not. Like I care if he comes or not."

"But you do care, don't you?" Shiki asked, seeing right through his guise—the lie he tried to tell himself. "He's your friend, right? So no one can blame you for wanting to see him again. And well, he's the only one of our group who hasn't come."

Neku scowled, pinching a spike of his hair between his fingers. He wanted to drop this conversation, but Eri's curiosity made that impossible.

"You guys always talk about this 'Joshua,'" she said, tilting her head with a smile. "Why don't you see him or text him or something if he's that important to you?"

"Are you kidding? And invite his crazy ass back in my life?" Neku replied. "No thanks. He already texted me once, and that was more than enough to deal with."

Eri then skipped ahead before turning to face the group, her eyes dancing with excitement. "Hey, does he have a Partner? You guys mentioned that he was once Neku's Partner—in whichever implication of that we feel like going with—but now, it's Shiki and Neku versus Rhyme and Beat. So does he have one now?"

"Not that I know of," Shiki answered. "But you don't, either, right? So it's not really that big of a—"

Neku, however, understood the other girl's point. "Hope you like pain-in-the-ass prissy kids. Neither of you have a Partner, meaning..."

As he trailed off, Eri's phone dinged. Curious, she checked it to find one text: "...meaning that you're stuck with yours truly, it would seem. Quite the interesting development, isn't it? Well... I suppose I look forward to working with you, Partner. Don't let me down."

Eri stared at it, her smile replaced with confusion. "Um... Do you know who this is from?" she asked as she turned it to the group.

Before any of them could speak, though, Neku ran a frustrated hand through his hair and said, "It's only a matter of time before I track his damn signal. Then I'm breaking his phone."

"Wait—is that the prissy boy?" Beat exclaimed, his face and arms moving in a mess as surprise captured him. "Wha's he doin' texting Eri?"

"That'd be Joshua, I think," Shiki added, putting a finger to her chin in thought. "I guess that's sorta like a pact?"

The other teenage girl stared at the text again, her face lighting up. Her grin reappeared, full of excitement, and with it, she commented, "I don't really know him, but he's pretty rude to text a girl without even showing his face."

"That isn't the sort of reaction I'd be having if I were you," Neku told her. "It's nothing to get excited about. Not with Josh."

"But he's part of your group, right? So I can't wait to meet him."

Neku stared a moment before turning to the girl's best friend. "Is she always like this?" he asked.

"Yep," Shiki answered, holding her doll close. "Eri really loves meeting new people, and she's good at talking to anyone."

" _Joshua_?" Neku emphasized, but the clicks of buttons drew him back to Eri. _Wait a minute—is she texting him back?_ he thought, flabbergasted.

"Er... Yo, man, Priss ain't exactly one you wanna text like that," Beat tried to intervene, but she'd already sent the message off.

"Why not?" she said, watching to see if Joshua would respond.

"Eri, some guy you don't even know just texted you despite not being anywhere on your contacts list," Neku attempted. "Doesn't that bother you?"

The redhead just turned to him, her face not losing its peppiness. "Not really. It's just someone new to meet!"

"...I'm guessing your parents neglected to teach you the concept of stranger danger."

"They taught me," she replied, turning ahead with her hands behind her back.

"Then you're just nuts."

"I'm not nuts." She didn't turn this time, but the same excited tone prevailed. "I just like to meet people and judge them for myself—give them the benefit of the doubt."

"What'd you even text him?" Rhyme asked, curious.

That grabbed Eri's attention again. With a confident smirk, she held her phone up for all to see the text: "I look forward to working with you, too! I won't, but you better not let me down, either! I better meet you soon, Partner!" That plus a little heart emoticon at the end, and she'd sent it back to the unknown number—but no reply from Joshua.

"So," Eri said, adjusting her hat, "any way I can meet my new Partner?"

Neku paused a moment, considering. He understood it—that contempt for others that once ate up both of them. But also, the loneliness that came with that position. Joshua did save Shibuya in the end and returned them all to life—perhaps he even wanted friends. Still, Neku knew—"He might not wanna be found," he said, turning away with his hands in his pockets. He knew it'd likely be hard to get in contact with Joshua unless he reached out himself.

"Isn't that even more of a reason to go find him?" the redhead replied. She let the wind catch her jacket as she held her hands behind her back. "If you just let him go, you may never see him again—and you'll just be left wondering what's going on in his life. That's way more sad that ignoring his wishes."

Shiki nodded in agreement. "Eri's right. We should at least try. Maybe we can find him or at least let him know we're looking at the Shibuya River."

"Whoa, hold it, yo!" Beat interrupted the moment, waving his hands around. "We're gonna see the priss? What 'bout the movies?"

"All in favor of going to see Joshua, raise your hand!" Eri commanded, and she lifted her own up high. The other two girls soon joined her, which only made Beat's mouth drop more.

"Rhyme?! Whatchu doin', yo?!"

"I never got a chance to thank him," the younger sibling stated.

"Bwaaaah!" Beat's signature yell echoed through the streets, making heads turn—not that he noticed. "Thank him?! What for, yo?! He's the whole reason we had to play that stupid Game in the first place!"

"But if we hadn't played, we wouldn't have gotten a second chance to live," Rhyme pointed out.

"What about you, Neku?" Though Neku heard Shiki speak, he didn't get to see her—instead, he saw the expressionless stare of Mr. Mew as she held him right in front of his face. "Don't you want to go see him?"

Neku took a minute to gather his nerves, his mind reeling. _Like hell,_ he tried telling himself. _That one week with him was a nightmare. Him being the Composer and using me was an even bigger nightmare. I'd be stupid to want to see him again._

Despite those thoughts, he couldn't help but wonder what Joshua was doing now. Plus, deep down, he couldn't deny it—he began showing up at Hachiko recently to wait. Not for the people he knew would come, but to wait for Joshua.

Neku sighed. "What does it even matter what I think?" he eventually conceded. "Going to see him has the majority vote anyway."

"So what are we waiting for?" Eri jogged over and pushed him forward—far more cheerful and annoying than Shiki had been the first few days he knew her. "Lead the way, Mister Multi-Partner!"

"Mister what?" Neku's deadpan voice didn't save him, though, and he led the group through the streets of Shibuya and towards the station underpass. Beat grumbled, but he wasn't about to let his sister out of his sights. The girls kept up most of the talking, and Eri told the other two about various trends and popular blogs.

Their talking died down as they approached the Shibuya River. Eri stared around like a curious cat, while Shiki jumped back in surprise. "What?! We went through sewers to reach all of that?!"

"Yep. Welcome to the grand entrance of Shibuya's Composer—the sewers," Neku announced with dry sarcasm.

"Can't he live somewhere a little... nicer?"

"Too late to back out now." Neku eased his headphones back on as he walked—maybe they could at least drown out that guy's annoying voice some. "Let's just get this over with."

One by one, the others tailed after him, though Beat hurried over to his sister. "Yo, Rhyme. Maybe, y'know, I should carry you down."

"Why?" she asked, smiling. "I can walk just fine."

"B-because! It might be dangerous! Like that one word! Wassit... trencherus!"

She didn't even turn back to him as he followed. "Treacherous. And it's fine—we're alive now, and I would think the Reapers would honor that. Who else would be down here besides them?"

Beat whined, "The priss! You ain't supposed to be this mature, yo!"

Ahead of them, Neku and Shiki couldn't help but talk about their time in the Game. They exchanged quips and jokes about their meeting and week together, keeping grins on their faces the whole time. Eri walked between the two pairs, listening to and observing both. The brother held his sister's hands, and the two who refused to admit their love itched to do the same. Eri only had her phone to keep her company, and she glanced at it, hoping for a text or something to entertain her. Nothing showed up on the screen, though, besides a picture of her and Shiki—back when they just had each other. Eri lowered her head so only her smile could be seen underneath her hat.

 _Shiki and Neku are cute together, and Rhyme and Beat are really good siblings. I don't mind that really,_ she thought. _I just don't want to be left alone again._

She knew this feeling all too well—loneliness. Not that most would guess it, since at school, she was always surrounded by classmates and friends. Not to mention, she seemed to be the record holder in her grade for the number of people who'd asked her out, as well as an equal record for the number of denials. She loved talking to people and meeting people, so she'd never felt lonely in the way of friends before. But that was because she refused to feel abandoned by someone important to her again.

Eri shook her head to banish the thought, holding her fists in front of her in determination. _I won't, though. I won't give up again—I'll never give up. Not on my friends._ She rose her eyes, her smile growing. _Besides, Shiki and I are a pair, even if she bucks up and gets together with Neku. And even on the off chance I..._

"Shiki." Neku stopped the group, drawing their attention ahead. Even in the darkness, they could all make out a wall where the way forward had once stood. They hadn't even made it to the luxurious pad deep inside yet.

"W-what should we do?" the brunette girl next to him asked, hugging her doll. Neku paused for a moment with his arms crossed. Could they even get past that? Not like they had a keypin to help them this time.

Before he could come up with a solution, Beat rushed past, almost knocking them over. "Yoooo! Open up, Priss!" he yelled. "We know you hidin' in there! Let us in! We wanna go to a movie, man!" No answer came, which only riled him up even more. "Dontchu make me smash bricks, 'cause I will, yo!"

Neku knew he had to intervene somehow—if nothing else, for his own peace and quiet. "Beat—you'd break your fist if you tried. Shut up."

"You dunno my fists! They like iron!"

"I really don't—"

Before Neku could finish, Beat swung at the wall—only for it to vanish before his fist connected. The punk tripped in his surprise and, with his usual yell, fell flat on his face.

Eri leaned over him, staring through the dark hallway in surprise. "Did that wall just vanish?"

Neku frowned a moment, but then he stepped over Beat to continue on. "You'll get used to it."

"Phones! Not cool!" Beat complained as he picked himself up. They all continued down the hall until they reached a door—a door that led them into the dead god's pad.

Eri's eyes lit up as they entered. A light seemed to illuminate from the blue floor, where fish swam below her feet. White couches and tables took up the middle of the room, perfectly pristine as if unused. Bottles and glasses of alcohol sat on the round table, comprised of ovals and circles, and more bottles sat along a lit up bar in the back of the room. In front of it, she couldn't help but grin upon seeing a table soccer setup, and a jukebox set along the black walls greeted them with soft, yet hip music. "Wow," she gasped to the others, her usual smile fading into pure shock. "I never would've guessed this was here..."

"Are wes like... back in the UG, yo?" Beat asked, confused. "Or am I trippin'?"

To test his question, Shiki pinched Neku, who yelped in surprise. "No, we're still normal..."

Neku scowled. Why did she have to be so dense sometimes? "Shiki. That would've hurt even in the UG."

"Oh, I guess you're right..."

"So," the punk continued, looking at the rest of them with a frown. "We back, then?"

"Not quite," a new voice spoke up, making all of them jump—and causing Shiki to latch onto to her closest neighbor: Neku. They whirled to their left, where a teenage boy now lounged on one of the couches. His wavy silver hair framed his girly face, and his purple eyes stayed glued to an orange phone in his hand. "See, this place is neither here nor there. Therefore, it can be anywhere I want it to be." He tilted his phone, a spiteful smirk playing on his face. "Then again, though. That's true of anything in Shibuya." That smirk and a chuckle—two annoying bits Neku hadn't missed.

Beat grabbed his sister's arm and pulled her back behind him. "I knew yous was here! Called it, yo!"

Eri, on the other hand, titled her head. "So this is Joshua?"

"Yes." He sat up, flipping his phone shut. "I would be Joshua." He stood, his gaze darting over each of them before chuckling again. "Hello again, Neku. I see you've wasted no time in further attaching yourself to your entry fee."

"Wh—" Neku's words failed him when he realized what Joshua meant—he hadn't even noticed Shiki hugging his arm. His face turned red, and he spun his head away.

"Y-you scared the crap outta me!" Shiki complained, not seeming to notice herself how close she'd gotten to Neku.

"Oh, did I? Hee hee. I'm sorry." He put a finger under his chin. "How about I arrange a private room for you both as an apology? It may help smooth over some of those pesky urges you've both been dying to get out."

 _...and even on the off chance I...I do what?_

Eri watched the exchange, more at home than before with the joking banter that passed between the friends. She stifled a laugh as Shiki protested, and she almost lost it when her best friend buried her head in Neku's shoulder in an attempt to hide the embarrassment—no doubt making it worse at the same time.

"Aww, I was just having a little fun with her," Joshua protested after Neku told him to shut up. "Can you blame me?"

"Yes. Stop it."

With a melodramatic sigh, the Composer replied, "Always the same, aren't you? Well, I suppose I can give it a rest." His grin from before returned—playful and sadistic. No, better than that—fun. "Anything for my dear, dear proxy."

When Neku didn't respond, Eri took the chance to step up. "It's nice to meet you, Joshua," she greeted. "I'm Eri."

"Hm?" Joshua titled his head, thoughtful. "Ah, yes. My new 'Partner.'" He stole a glance at Shiki before his eyes flickered back to the pink haired girl before him. "So nice to meet you, too, now that your guise is not simply part of your jealous friend's entry fee."

"Yeah." Eri knew what he meant—Shiki had explained everything after prompting from Neku. "I'm sad about what happened, but... Thank you for giving Shiki a chance to come back to me. I had no idea back then, but I'm glad she's happier now."

"I wanted to thank you for that sort of thing as well," Rhyme piped up.

"I'm afraid your gratitude is misplaced. Neku is the one who guided her through her week as a Player, not me. Though, he's also the one who brought her right back in, too. Quite ironic, isn't it?" Joshua peered at Rhyme next. "Or Beat, in your case, even though all he really did was fail."

"Why you little—!"

Now it was Eri's turn to done a playful grin, ignoring Beat's outburst. "I think Neku's won a ton of 'thanks' from Shiki already."

Finally, Shiki looked and realized her folly. "Ah—I'm so sorry!" she gasped as she jumped back from her former Partner, clutching Mr. Mew close as a whirlwind of confusing feelings passed through her.

Neku shook his head, giving a soft, "It's fine," though he didn't even look her way.

"Has he?" Joshua asked, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "Do tell. I'd love to hear all about it."

"Too bad. You're not going to," Neku replied as he folded his arms over his chest. "Josh, do you want to go out or not? I'm tired of you always blowing us off."

A frown showed on Joshua's face for less than a second, soon replaced by a smirk. "Out? Me?"

"Yeah—"

"I'm flattered by the offer, Neku, but I'm not sure Miss Misaki would approve of such scandalous implications." To further his point, he held his arms out in a shrug, coupled with a sigh.

Neku felt the veins in his forehead popping, though he fought to keep his cool. "I don't mean like that, you ass."

"We're all going to see a movie," Eri explained with a small laugh, "and we're inviting you to come with. Unless you really think you're going to bail on us."

"I'm quite busy, you know... running the whole city?" He gave a thoughtful hum, keeping his true thoughts out of it as he continued, "I don't hang out."

Eri's grin stretched as she tilted forward. "Sounds like an excuse to me. I think Shibuya will be fine for a few hours—it's a really great place already."

Joshua blinked. No questioning, but just casual acceptance. Did the others tell her that much, or was she simply that oblivious? Regardless, he wasn't sure he wanted to lose to their temptations quite yet. "Hm... I wonder."

"Then how about Tin Pin to decide?" Eri suggested, her hands folded in front of her face as if asking in a "cute" manner. "If I win, you're coming with us."

While Joshua quirked an eyebrow, Beat flailed his hands behind her. His hushed voice called out, "Eri, bad move, yo! He don't play fair!"

The girl turned a grin back to him. "That's okay. He hasn't played against me yet."

After a moment's pause, the Composer shrugged. "If you insist. I'm not so heartless as to decline such a humble honor."

"All right! Time for my best board, then!" Eri set it up, and both chose their set of pins and set them down. With Shiki to count them off, the two began their match. Joshua kept his smug composure as they played, though Eri proved to be quite the formidable opponent. Both lost pins, going back and forth on strategies as they tried to best the other.

 _Well... I suppose she isn't a bad player to lose to._

Joshua lost his last pin, declaring Eri the winner. "Ha! I did it!" she cheered with a giggle. "That means you're with us today!"

"Oh dear... It seems you're right. I lost." Joshua didn't seem all that bothered—not that he ever showed much emotion. "Well, fair is fair. We had a deal. Congratulations."

"Heheh, thanks. You're pretty good!"

"I'm good at most things," the Composer replied as he gathered his pins and stored them in his jeans pocket. "Shall we be going? Only so much time in the day, as they say. Isn't that right, Raimu?"

"Yes, exactly," Rhyme replied, tilting her head in her own cheerfulness.

"Dontju go addressin' her so close and personal like!" the girl's brother yelled, protective.

"Feeling left out? I can always include you, Daisuke—"

"Bwaaaaaahh! No! Dammit—anything but that!" Beat spun around in a huff and pushed his sister along. "Let's bounce, yo! I can't stand Joshua!"

The others began following, Eri in the back as she replied, "Aww, he doesn't seem that bad. He seems pretty nice, actually!"

"Of course I'm nice," the one in question said. "Who told you I wasn't?"

Neku saw right through him, though—further than Joshua had realized. "You lost on purpose, Josh."

Joshua faltered, but he masked it with a grin. "Come now, Neku. That's not very polite. In fact, tarnishing someone's hard-earned victory is rather rude."

Eri listened to every word and simply smiled. "No, I don't mind. If that's true, then that's even more proof that you're really nice."

Joshua didn't even know how to respond to that. No one called him "nice"—everyone knew better than that. Hadn't she seen better in his interactions with the others today? All he could do was throw her a questioning look as he concluded in his mind that she was indeed a weird girl.

Eri's eyes met his confused stare, and she lost her words for a moment.

 _Even if I... No. This is just excitement, right? For the fun we're going to have._

The girl took a deep breath and answered his silent question, "Because you chose to come with us." She then hurried ahead.

 _My name is Eri Yumi. I'm friends with everyone, and I made a new friend today—a fun friend, who I have so many questions for. That's all I am and ever will be—a "friend." Because I'm the girl who never falls in love._

 _...aren't I?_


End file.
